Guangzhen Zhou on wed 9 nov 05
CHINESE CLAYART, November 2005, Vol. 47
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"CHINESE CLAYART" is a newsletter emailed bi-monthly to professional
artists, curators, collectors, writers, experts, educators and students in
the ceramic field, who want to know about ceramic art in China and things
related. This newsletter will be a bridge between China and Western
countries for the ceramic arts. Comments and suggestions are very welcome.
(Copyright 2005, the Chinese Ceramic Art Council, USA. All rights
reserved.)
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The Chinese Ceramic Art Council, USA
P.O. Box 1733, Cupertino, CA 95015, USA
Tel. 800-689-2529, Fax. 408-777-8321
Email: chineseclayart@hotmail.com
Web: www.chineseclayart.com
Chief Editor: Guangzhen "Po" Zhou
English Editor: Deborah Bouchette
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FEATURES
Grand Opening of the Online Ceramic Gallery and Gifts Shop
November 1, 2005.
I have been studying and collecting ceramic art works for many years. I have
visited many ancient kilns and ceramic villages and found some good
reproduction factories for ware from local kilns. For a long time, I
nurtured an idea to open a web-store and provide affordable, collectable,
educational Chinese ceramic art reproductions with museum quality, in order
to provide all kinds of Chinese traditional ceramic art to our western
customers and collectors. Our new Ceramic Gifts Shop will carry teapots of
the Yixing Kiln, celadons of the Yaozhou and Longquan Kiln, blue-and-white
and multi-colored ceramics of the Jingdezhen Kiln, and gift ideas like
necklaces and jewelry boxes. It is also a good opportunity for ceramic
artists and lovers to study the shapes, colors, glazes and firing techniques
of Chinese ceramic history.
Meanwhile, we are going to continue to host Chinese ceramic art exhibitions
in the US, and provide the one-of-a-kind or limited-edition art works on our
website.
Please visit our website at www.chineseclayart.com and click on Gallery and
Gifts. It is just the beginning of this business, and we really need your
comments and your suggestions to enhance our products and services.
Thank you for your support!
Guangzhen Zhou, Director, Chinese Clay Art USA
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PROFILE
Yaozhou Kiln
Established in the Tang Dynasty and prospering in the Northern Song Dynasty,
the Yaozhou Kiln is one of the well-known celadon kilns in China. It is
located in Huangpuzhen and Chenluzhen in the Yaozhou area of Shanxi
province. The typical style of the Song Dynasty Yaozhou celadon ware were
dark green glazed vessels such as bowls, dishes, saucers, jars, vases, small
bottles and cups which are decorated with carvings or impressed with dragon,
phoenix and floral patterns.
Three Treasures of Yaozhou Kiln:
Justice Cup
The Justice Cup is a drinking vessel. There is a standing dragon in the
middle of the cup and a small hole in the foot of the cup. If one fills the
cup below the brim, the water will be kept in the cup, but if one fills the
cup above the brim, the liquid will run out. That is the reason why it is
called the Justice Cup.
According to legend, the cup is a family heirloom of the Tang emperor. At
the wedding ceremony of Li Mao (who was the son of emperor Li Longji) and
Yang Yuguan, Li Longji gave the cup as a present to Yang Yuhuan and asked
her: “Do you know the meaning of why I give the cup to you?” Yang answered:
“Doing anything should be controlled moderately or there could be nothing
left.”
Phoenix Chirping Kettle
The Phoenix Chirping Kettle is a pottery or porcelain flagon using the
phoenix as the essential model and decorated with the peony flower. The
kettle makes noises like the chirping of a phoenix as the wine in it flows
out.
There is a legend about the manufacturing of this kettle. In the Song
dynasty, queen Wu Zetian once dreamed of a beautiful phoenix playing in a
crowd of peonies, all who were eating and drinking, singing and dancing
naturally. When she awakened, she realized it was only a dream, and she
believed it was an omen of peace and luck. So she ordered skillful
craftsman in Yaozhou to make a kettle of a phoenix playing in a crowd of
peonies. From then on, the queen Wu held the vessel every day, hearing the
splendid and lucky chirping, and prayed for the prosperity of the country
and the peaceful lives of the people. The widely spread story of the
“phoenix playing in a crowd of peonies” among the masses eulogized and
reinforced its romantic representation.
Reverse Flowing Wine Pot
The wine pot has a drum shape with beautiful carved flower patterns on the
surface. The handle of the pot is like a flying phoenix and the mouth of the
pot is like a small lion’s mouth that is being suckled. There is a small
hole in the middle of the bottom for filling the wine and it pours out from
the spout. The patterns on the surface of the pot indicate good luck.
(Reproductions of the stoneware vessels of the Yaozhou Kiln with Song
Dynasty styles are available at our website in the Gallery and Gifts
section.)
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TRAVEL
I have just returned from a China tour with a group of Americans. We had a
very exciting opening of the Jingdezhen Ceramic Fair. Starting in Shanghai,
we visited Foshan after the ceramic fair and ended in Beijing. Walking
around the antique market and to find some unique historical cultural items
with good prices was great fun for everyone.
Next year, we plan to lead two tours to China. The first one will be in the
spring in April. We are going to work with Mr. Mel Jacobson
(clayart@lsv.ceramics.org), the moderator of Clay Art Group of US. In the
tour, we will focus on the ancient ceramic kiln sites and the antiques
markets in different areas and cities. The second one will be in June 2006,
which is our regular ceramic cultural exchange program.
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ACTIVITIES
Educational Poster Series –Form and Color - 100 Chinese Historical Ceramics
We plan to compile and print a poster of “Form and Color - 100 Chinese
Historical Ceramics.” We would like to invite all collectors of Chinese
ceramics to email us their pictures for inclusion. We will select 100
ceramic pieces that represent all kinds of forms, glazes and colors from
different kilns and areas in Chinese ceramic art history. The poster will be
21" x 31" and will be printed vertically in full color.
Eligibility: All pictures need to be in 35mm slide or jpg format, and taken
by a professional-level photographer. Please include information about the
piece (size and description).
Deadline: April 30, 2006
Copyrights grant and signature:
I agree to grant the copyright of my selected works to Guangzhen Zhou /
Chinese Clay Art Corp. for printed educational materials to promote the
ceramic art, specifically for the poster of 100 Contemporary International
Teapots.
Your name (print and sign):______________________________Date:_____________
Contact: Please email the cyber images to: ChineseClayArt@yahoo.com, or mail
your slides to:
Chinese Ceramic Art Council, USA
P.O. Box 1733
Cupertino, CA 95015, USA
Note: In the newsletter of March 2005, we posted the entry information for
“100 Contemporary International Teapots”. Since we have not gotten enough
entries, we will put the teapot images together with those from the
International Teapot Exhibition of Yixing 2005 and the International Small
Teapot Competition Saddleback College, Mission Viejo, California 2006 (for
details and entry forms, please visit:
http://gallery.saddleback.edu/shows/15FEB06/). The poster is scheduled to be
printed out and available at our web store around the summer of 2006.
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OPPORTUNITIES
Big Fish and Small Pot - Second International Small Teapot Competition
Saddleback College Art Gallery, Mission Viejo, California, USA
Entry Deadline (slides): December 15, 2005
Exhibition: February 15 through March 9, 2006
Artist’s Reception: February 16, 2006, 6 to 9 pm
For details and entry forms, please visit:
http://gallery.saddleback.edu/shows/15FEB06/
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CLAY TOOL and BOOK STORE
New Items in the Book Section
BK851, Playing cards. 54 pictures of porcelain wares from the Yuan to Qing
Dynasties of China (1271-1911) as collected by the Shanghai Museum.
BK9001-BK9039. 39 different postcards, printed with beautiful porcelain
wares that have been collected by Shanghai Museum.
Holiday Sale: (Promotion expires Dec. 31, 2005)
During the holiday season, we are including free gifts with orders of our
low price products:
For orders over $100 and up to $1000, you will receive a Multi-Function Tool
(M2012, $17 retail value)--8 functions: adjustable wrench, Phillips
screwdriver, slotted screwdriver, saw, file, pliers, knife, and wire cutter.
For orders over $1000, you will receive the book, A Dictionary of Chinese
Ceramics (BK007, $250 retail value).
Price Changes from Chinese Clay Art USA
Dear Valued Customers,
Due to the world wide price increase of many materials, and the currency
exchange differences between the US and China, we are going to raise our
prices from 3% - 10% some of our products starting in Jan. 2006.
Two years after the establishment of our ceramic art studio, the Clayground,
we opened this clay tools endeavor in the end of 2001, four years ago. The
current prices of our products were calculated based on the year of 2002.
During the past years, we have developed many new products and obtained two
patents for our products. We carry unique products such as texture mats,
breathable clay boards, stamps, and ceramic and wood molds in many themes.
Also, our director Guangzhen Zhou has been traveling back and forth between
the US and China every one or two months. He has been contacting many
factories to find good quality products with low prices. Many of these
factories are actually located in the underdeveloped countryside.
We will continue to try our best to keep low prices to serve our customers.
We are very appreciative of all your support during the past years, and we
will continue to develop new products, provide competitively priced items
and the best services to all of our clients.
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An earlier newsletter is on the Web at:
http://www.chineseclayart.com
THE END.
--------------------------------------------------------
Guangzhen "Po" Zhou
The Chinese Clay Art, USA
PO Box 1733
Cupertino, CA 95015
Tel. 408-343-3919, 408-777-8319, Fax. 408-777-8321
www.chineseclayart.com, chineseclayart@hotmail.com
Art Tools are Part of Art Works.
Malcolm Schosha on wed 9 nov 05
I would love to see an image of this, but can not find anything.
Malcolm Schosha
Phoenix Chirping Kettle
The Phoenix Chirping Kettle is a pottery or porcelain flagon using the
phoenix as the essential model and decorated with the peony flower. The
kettle makes noises like the chirping of a phoenix as the wine in it flows
out.
There is a legend about the manufacturing of this kettle. In the Song
dynasty, queen Wu Zetian once dreamed of a beautiful phoenix playing in a
crowd of peonies, all who were eating and drinking, singing and dancing
naturally. When she awakened, she realized it was only a dream, and she
believed it was an omen of peace and luck. So she ordered skillful
craftsman in Yaozhou to make a kettle of a phoenix playing in a crowd of
peonies. From then on, the queen Wu held the vessel every day, hearing the
splendid and lucky chirping, and prayed for the prosperity of the country
and the peaceful lives of the people. The widely spread story of the
“phoenix playing in a crowd of peonies” among the masses eulogized and
reinforced its romantic representation.
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